Colombo – April 25, 2025: Sri Lanka’s labour force participation rate (LFPR) stagnated at 47.7% in the fourth quarter of 2024, revealing persistent structural challenges—particularly the glaring gender disparity in workforce engagement.
According to new data released by the Department of Census and Statistics, the LFPR edged up slightly from 47.1% in Q4 2023 but remains well below pre-pandemic levels. Out of a working-age population of 17.6 million, only 8.4 million individuals were economically active—either employed or actively seeking employment—while 9.2 million, the majority of whom are women, remained outside the labour force.
The country’s female labour force participation rate (FLFP) stood at just 30.3%, unchanged from previous quarters. By contrast, 67.6% of men were economically active, underscoring a deeply entrenched gender divide in employment. This divide is particularly stark in rural regions, where 71% of the economically inactive population are women.
Among working women, 50.7% were employed in the services sector—compared to 46.1% of men—highlighting a trend of occupational segregation into traditionally lower-paid and less secure roles such as education, healthcare, and retail.
While Sri Lanka’s overall unemployment rate remained at a modest 4.2%, youth unemployment remained alarmingly high. Nearly one in five individuals aged 15–24 (19.8%) were unemployed, with young women hit the hardest—facing a staggering 25.7% unemployment rate, compared to 16.3% for young men. The educated youth faced similar challenges: 10% of educated women with GCE A/L qualifications or higher were jobless, more than double the 4.7% rate for educated men.
The total employed population in Q4 stood at 8.07 million, distributed across services (47.6%), agriculture (26.8%), and industry (25.7%). Agriculture saw a slight recovery from earlier quarters, but remains dominated by informal employment—42.7% as own-account workers and 62% as contributing family workers—highlighting vulnerabilities in rural job markets.
The industrial sector saw a slight dip in its share of employment, reflecting slower-than-expected manufacturing growth. Meanwhile, the rise in full-time employment—70.3% of workers clocking over 40 hours per week, up from 64% in 2023—suggests a modest post-crisis stabilization. However, informality remains a concern, with 73.2% of non-agricultural jobs lacking formal protections or consistent wages.